Setting Default Apps on Mobile Devices

Set up your device to save time.

Written by Aaron Shoemaker Updated over a week ago

Often, on your phone or tablet, you may wish to always open a particular kind of file, such as a PDF, in something like Xodo PDF Editor, instead of Acrobat or some other built-in reader. To accomplish this, you'll need to be able to set a default app.

iOS (iPhone and iPad):

There is no concept of default applications in iOS.

To make things easier when sharing/opening a file in other applications, you can move items in the share sheet around by tapping and holding them, then moving them to the desired position.

This can help greatly with getting commonly used applications that you share files to, like ServiceTrade, Xodo, etc, in an easy-to-reach position.

Android:

When sharing a file to another app in Android, note which app is opening automatically.

Go to Settings

Go to Apps

Select the app that is currently the default launcher for a certain file type.

Scroll down to “Launch By Default”.

Tap “Clear Defaults”.

The next time you try to say, open a PDF, you should be given an option to choose which app you'd like to use. If not, repeat steps 1-6 for any other app that automatically opens a particular file type, and that you wish not to.

You may be given an option to open the file in the app you choose "Just Once", or "Always". Choosing "Always" will result in no choice being given in the future. That file type will now always open in the app you specified.